Over the years, we’ve shared many updates with you on our blog: product related announcements, industry events, community building efforts, and sustainability initiatives and our progress towards net zero.
But behind the glamour is a lot of hard work and dedication. For the BMW i Vision Dee concept car, for example, there were last-minute changes, sleepless nights, and a lot of creativity and collaboration between the teams.
We wanted to give you a peek into what working at E Ink is like – and spotlight some of the incredible Inkers behind the technology. They pursue their passions while making a difference every day.
With that, we’d like to welcome you to our first blog post of the “Ask an Inker” series. Meet Jennifer Lampron, senior display manufacturing engineer at E Ink.
E Ink: Tell us about yourself, Jenn. What brought you to E Ink?
Jenn: Prior to coming to E Ink, I worked in the world of printed circuit board assembly (PCBA). I went to college for chemical engineering, and I later went back for a master's degree in business. After college, circuit board manufacturing was a prominent job locally in my area, so I went into plating process engineering, and I slowly transitioned from plating to other kinds of electronics assembly. At E Ink, I’m able to leverage some of my past experiences in PCBA to assist with the design and manufacturing of backplanes, especially the ones that we use for our segmented typed parts.
Jennifer Lampron, senior display manufacturing engineer.
Credit: E Ink
I am also what they call a “re-Inker,” which means a boomerang employee. This November, I’ll be celebrating my ten-year anniversary working at E Ink!
E Ink: As a display manufacturing engineer, what does your job entail? What does your day to day look like?
Jenn: I'm in the office most days, which is really helpful. There's a lot of critical design work, so being present and working collaboratively with the engineering team is huge.
As a display manufacturing engineer, every day looks a bit different. I connect with customers on their needs, and look into how to put our ink into a viable product. That involves looking at the shape and material stack, and determining the process, what machinery to use, and what films to select. A lot of teams work closely together in the making of the parts for the customers.
E Ink: As part of the team to bring the BMW concept cars to life – both the iX Flow and i Vision Dee – what was a challenge that the teams had encountered and overcame?
Jenn: The method by which we were making those parts was new to us – especially for the i Vision Dee in color. We went from basically zero to having to deliver hundreds of these parts.
A panel of E Ink ePaper engineered to fit the BMW i Vision Dee concept car.
Credit: E Ink
That was a challenge that we had to overcome, but it was exciting at the same time. The BMW team was responsive, collaborative, and a trusted partner during the whole process.
The i Vision Dee concept car unveiled at CES 2023.
Credit: BMW
It was fun to bring the idea to life on the main stage of CES 2023. What’s cool was I got to be there to see the color car in action. It really enabled me to engage with the car. It was an awesome opportunity that I got to tell my kids about.
Jenn at CES 2023 interacting with the i Vision Dee concept car.
Credit: E Ink
E Ink: If you had to use three words to describe working at E Ink, what would that be?
Jenn: Busy, collaboration, and excitement. Days are too short and there's an abundance of opportunities, but there's a constant energy of moving things forward. So, we're busy but we're not standing still. We're always moving on to the next thing.
We are also a very collaborative team. We have a lot of different subject matter experts, and everyone is willing to donate their time to help with a challenge. We collaborate to bring the end products to life. Each Inker is also incredibly curious and has a problem-solving mentality. This means challenges don’t stand in our way, and in fact, we welcome them.
And as for excitement? There’s always excitement in launching a new product, no matter how long it took to bring it into reality.
E Ink: What are you most excited about for the future of E Ink?
Jenn: Color! It's a totally different realm when you're going from black and white to color. From consumer devices to retail to industrial applications, color enables personalization and engagement, and it delivers improved customer experiences. The Dee concept car was a great example!
Check out Jenn’s interview where she explained the design process of the i Vision Dee concept car, and stay tuned for the next blog in the “Ask an Inker” series.
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